Page 16 of Cajuns. Love. Curves.

He leans over and kisses the tip of my nose. “Your wish is my command. First though, let me get you cleaned up and then I’ll go find us some ice cream.”

* * *

Half an hour later Remy has left me in the hotel and gone in search of ice cream and other sustenance. My phone rings from across the room and I pick it up and answer.

“Miss me already?” I ask, feeling playful.

“I’m assuming you weren’t expecting my call, young lady,” my father says.

Oh no, oh no, oh no. My stomach knots and I curl into myself.

“That’s what I thought. I’m guessing from the way you answered that you’ve opened your legs for that sailor. They’ve never been as trustworthy as soldiers. But hear me now, Ava, your mother and I are expecting you to be here in Houston tomorrow. You will show up and you will look presentable. You won’t make a scene and you will be the kind of appropriate young woman that Senator Johnston’s son is looking for. This is a good alliance for our family and you will not fuck it up. Am I understood.”

My knee jerk reaction is to just say ‘yes sir’ and leave it at that. But I feel that fire burning inside me, the one Remy says he can see burning clearly in my eyes. “I don’t know if that works for me, Father,” I say.

My father sucks in a breath and then releases a chilling laugh. “Listen to me. You might not worry about threats made to you anymore. You’re an adult. I get that you think that means you have some power. But let me tell you something, Ava. I have all the power. I have the power to take your SEAL’s career and rip it right out from underneath him. Is that what you want? You want him to be ruined with a scandal? For him to be dishonorably discharged? Don’t test me in this, Ava.” And then he disconnects the call.

I immediately go into the bathroom and empty what little contents I have in my stomach. Then I turn on the shower. I don’t know how long I stand under the water. Long enough for it to turn cold and for Remy to find me. Thankfully my tears have stopped.

Still he cradles me and carries me to the bed wrapped in a towel.

“Ava, sugar, you’re scaring me. What happened while I was gone?”

I look up at his face and do my best to give him a fake smile. I’ve been faking things my entire life. Standing at my parents’ country club and smiling politely while my mother explained that I had a glandular issue and that’s why my thighs were so hefty. Of course there was no such thing, but it made her feel better to make those excuses.

But here with Remy, my defenses were gone. I was unable to pretend and smile politely. And he could see through every one of my efforts to try and dissuade him.

Currently I was cradled in Remy’s lap, still wrapped in a towel. He looked down at the bed around us and leaned forward to pick up my phone.

“Unlock it for me, sugar. I could do it myself, but I’d have to put you down and I’d rather not take my hands off of you right now.”

I shake my head.

“I’m serious, Ava. Do you know what I do on my SEAL team? I’m the intelligence guy. I’m basically the computer dude. The resident tech nerd. The hacker, if you will. I can, and will, break into your phone if I need to.”

I rattle off my six digit pass code and he types it in. Then immediately clicks to the most recent call log.

“You spoke to your father. Did he threaten you?” Remy tilts my chin up so he can look into my eyes. “I need to know what he said to you. If he threatened you, I’ll kill him. I don’t care if he is your father.”

“He didn’t threaten me. He threatened you. Your job to be precise.” Then the floodgates for the tears open. “I’m so sorry, Remy. You never should have agreed to me as an assignment.”

“You’re not an assignment. You’re my whole world. And you don’t worry about your father and his silly threats either. He’s retired and from an entirely different branch of the military. He can’t do anything to my job.”

“You don’t know that. He has powerful friends. I know how much being a SEAL means to you. I ruin everything.”

“No, you make everything better. Full of life and color.” He lifts me off his lap and lays me on the bed, pulling the covers up and over me. Then he spoons me from behind. “Let’s get some sleep and then we’ll have ice cream and round two. But no more worries about me or my job.”

chapternine

Remy

I know what I have to do the minute Ava falls asleep. I slip from the bed and into the bathroom where I turn the fan on to try to muffle the noise. Then I hit the contact number for my CO.

He answers on the second ring. “You better have a damn good reason for waking me up, Guidry. What the fuck do you want?”

“Sorry to wake you. I’ve got an issue. I’m not sure if you’re familiar with a Colonel Reynolds, he’s from the Armed forces. Retired in the last four years.”

“What did you do?”

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